Hat Lore

Has the Mountie always Worn the Stetson?

Member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
Photo courtesy of RCMP

In 1873, the Parliament of Canada provided for the establishment of the North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) to enforce the law on the western frontier. Originally, the NWMP wore the foreign service pith helmet, made of cork covered in cloth, and the pillbox cap for undress, to suit their image as a paramilitary force. By the late 1800s, some officers were unofficially wearing cowboy or prairie felt hats while on patrol. In 1901, the NWMP officially adopted the famous brown stetson.